| Bette Frick
The Text Doctor®
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| Quote of the Month | |
"Commas in The New Yorker fall with the precision of knives in a circus act, outlining the victim."
E.B. White
1899-1985
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| Quiz on the introductory comma | |
How would you punctuate this sentence?
Consequently if we factor in product support hours and planned project hours the backlog increases to 1700+ hours. Take this one-question quiz. |
Poll results on indiscriminate use of the word "around"
| Thank you to my brilliant readers who agreed with me* that the word "around" is being misused. See the results here.
*(85% of respondents) |
Free grammar training in 2011
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Watch this newsletter for these future lessons:
- Four uses of commas
- Two uses of semicolons
- Five uses of colons
- Two uses of hyphens
- Two uses of apostrophes
- Punctuation placement
- Punctuation of vertical lists
Stay tuned.
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The Text Doctor's Diagnosis
January 2011
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Greetings!
I'd like to wish you, and all my loyal readers, a Happy New Year.
I'm excited about some interesting new projects that I'm working on. I'm especially excited about creating grammar content for a new online grammar class I'm developing.
I plan to share some of this content with you, one lesson at a time, with a quiz question to test your learning. See "My favorite things: The introductory comma" for a sample of these monthly lessons.
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The 50 drafts of The King's Speech
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| I saw The King's Speech on New Year's Day and enjoyed learning about how King George VI overcame his crippling stammer. I found great hope in this nearly perfect movie on three counts.
First, David Seidler, the screenwriter, wrote 50 drafts of the screenplay. And I'm complaining about multiple drafts of this newsletter? Thank you, Mr. Seidler, for reminding me that good writing products require rewriting. And feedback*. And rewriting.
Second, Seidler achieved more success with this movie than any other endeavor in his 73 years. As he said in a recent Newsweek article, "I'm very happy now, in retrospect, that this kind of success didn't happen to me early on. It can really bend your head. I would have become very pompous." In a time when young programmers and inventors make millions, it's encouraging to know that success may be lurking for those of us who are, ahem, older than the norm.
Third, Seidler used his own experience of being a stutterer in his youth to grace the script with reality. He depicts the real story of how Lionel Logue coached the king-to-be into almost normal speech by confronting the psychological causes of his stuttering. This successful outcome inspires me to believe that I can overcome my own handicaps.
After this trifecta of hopefulness, I am also hoping for an Oscar sweep for The King's Speech.
*Special thanks to my faithful editor, Liz Willis, who improves my newsletter every month.
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Reap the benefits of correct punctuation
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| Understanding how to use punctuation will help you communicate more effectively, create pleasing variety in your sentences, and make an immediate improvement in your writing:
- A correctly punctuated sentence is immediately clear and understandable.
- Punctuation can make your writing more interesting by adding rhythm and variety.
- Even small adjustments to punctuation can improve your writing substantially.
Ultimately, we are all responsible for our own punctuation, but correct punctuation is not intuitive. In a perfect world, we would each have an editor who would correct our punctuation mistakes. Since that is probably not going to happen any time soon, studying punctuation will improve your communication skills.
If punctuation isn't your strong suit right now, don't be discouraged. It can be learned, and learning it will make you a better communicator. In every newsletter in 2011, I'll help you understand a different aspect of punctuation. We'll start with one of my favorites, the introductory comma.
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Favorite things: The introductory comma
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| Commas are the most commonly  used and abused items of punctuation. Once you master commas, you will see the fastest improvement in your own communication.
The most common abuse of the comma occurs with the failure to use the introductory comma correctly. Use a comma to separate introductory material from the rest of the sentence. This helps emphasize the introductory material and clarifies what comes after.
Examples:
- Clearly, the problem originates in Coding.
- Of course, we will need to repopulate the database.
- If you want to join the group, send an e-mail.
If you start a phrase or clause with the word "if," you always use a comma to set off that phrase or clause from the rest of the sentence. This rule has virtually no exceptions (unlike other rules in English)!
If you have a short introductory phrase and no confusion would result without a comma, the comma may be optional:
- After dinner everyone went into the main auditorium.
- After dinner, everyone went into the main auditorium.
It is possible to have two introductory elements in a sentence, each set off by a comma. For example:
- However, if you have a nonconforming property, you will need to file for an exemption.
Using the introductory comma allows you to place the emphasis where you want and helps your reader immediately understand your message.
Test your knowledge of this topic with this brief, one-question quiz.
Next month: The serial comma!
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